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SHEEP-fed-barely-sprouting-fodders, page : 14
Sheep do not have teeth in their top jaw instead they have a hard palate. Their bottom row of teeth consists of 8 incisors in the front and 24 molars, sometimes called "cheek teeth" at the rear of the mouth. Up to a certain age, the incisors can help you to determine the age of a sheep.
Up until a lamb is one year old, it has eight small incisor teeth. Each year thereafter, one pair of lamb teeth is replaced by two permanent teeth that are noticeably larger. At the age of 4 years, all the lamb teeth have been replaced by permanent teeth. Once this age has been reached it is no longer possible to accurately determine its age by looking at its teeth, however, for the trained eye an estimate based on the condition of the teeth can be assumed. What happens thereafter is that sheep begin to loose permanent teeth, and this is termed, "broken mouth".
As a sheep eats there is a grinding action that begins to wear away the teeth. The teeth of an older ewe look very much narrower with the wider part of the tooth being worn back toward the narrower center part of the tooth while the even narrower part below the gum line is being pushed up. This reduces the efficiency of the ewe's bite and when an older ewe grazes you will be able to hear sound as the grass slips between her teeth.
Another contributory factor of teeth wear occurs when the pasture is overstocked. What happens is the grass is being over eaten and does not have a chance to replenish itself so that the remaining grass is consumed together with either sand or soil that acts like sandpaper on the teeth.
Teeth terminology:
Sheep are often referred to as having:
Solid mouth. A solid mouth is when a sheep has reached the age of about 4 years and has all its adult teeth.
Spreaders. This refers to older animals with apparent teeth wear. The narrow parts of the teeth that are under the gums are moving up into position.
Broken mouth. Missing teeth, and this is an indication that a sheep may only have one or two lambing seasons left.
Gummers. These are sheep that have lost all their front teeth and are a very poor buy, however, they can be a better buy than one with a "broken mouth" because as their gums harden they are able to still chomp away at grass. If an old ewe has just one or two teeth remaining and you want to keep her, then it is advisable to pull the remaining teeth with pliers.
SHAPE AND SIZE OF SHEEP
Up until a lamb is one year old, it has eight small incisor teeth. Each year thereafter, one pair of lamb teeth is replaced by two permanent teeth that are noticeably larger. At the age of 4 years, all the lamb teeth have been replaced by permanent teeth. Once this age has been reached it is no longer possible to accurately determine its age by looking at its teeth, however, for the trained eye an estimate based on the condition of the teeth can be assumed. What happens thereafter is that sheep begin to loose permanent teeth, and this is termed, "broken mouth".
As a sheep eats there is a grinding action that begins to wear away the teeth. The teeth of an older ewe look very much narrower with the wider part of the tooth being worn back toward the narrower center part of the tooth while the even narrower part below the gum line is being pushed up. This reduces the efficiency of the ewe's bite and when an older ewe grazes you will be able to hear sound as the grass slips between her teeth.
Another contributory factor of teeth wear occurs when the pasture is overstocked. What happens is the grass is being over eaten and does not have a chance to replenish itself so that the remaining grass is consumed together with either sand or soil that acts like sandpaper on the teeth.
Teeth terminology:
Sheep are often referred to as having:
Solid mouth. A solid mouth is when a sheep has reached the age of about 4 years and has all its adult teeth.
Spreaders. This refers to older animals with apparent teeth wear. The narrow parts of the teeth that are under the gums are moving up into position.
Broken mouth. Missing teeth, and this is an indication that a sheep may only have one or two lambing seasons left.
Gummers. These are sheep that have lost all their front teeth and are a very poor buy, however, they can be a better buy than one with a "broken mouth" because as their gums harden they are able to still chomp away at grass. If an old ewe has just one or two teeth remaining and you want to keep her, then it is advisable to pull the remaining teeth with pliers.
SHAPE AND SIZE OF SHEEP